The Raiders are sitting at 3-3, and for a rebuilding team, that’s a decent place to be six weeks into the 2026 season. But the bigger story in Las Vegas right now is the ground game, and it’s turning into a real headache.
The blocking up front has been shaky, but the issue doesn’t stop there. Ashton Jeanty, the second-year back the Raiders spent big draft capital on, hasn’t come close to matching the expectations that came with being picked inside the top 10 in the 2025 NFL Draft.
ESPN’s Ryan McFadden said the concern has only grown after the Raiders’ Week 6 loss to the Buffalo Bills. As he put it, "the alarm bells around Jeanty have gotten louder."
McFadden also wrote, "Jeanty's rushing numbers this season have been subpar for a player taken inside the top 10 of last year's draft," and added, "At this point, the Raiders need to consider increasing Mike Washington Jr.'s workload."
That’s a notable shift for a team that drafted Jeanty hoping he’d become the kind of franchise-changing back Bijan Robinson and Jahmyr Gibbs have become for their teams. Instead, through six weeks, the questions are piling up.
Against Buffalo, Jeanty carried the ball 10 times for 22 yards and a touchdown. Washington, the rookie backup, ran nine times for 43 yards and looked noticeably more explosive in the process.
For the season, Jeanty has 313 rushing yards and one rushing touchdown on 98 carries, which works out to 3.19 yards per attempt. Washington is averaging 4.94 yards per carry, and that gap is hard to ignore.
The Raiders have also made it clear they do not plan to shut Jeanty down for a week to help his preseason ankle injury heal. If that’s the approach, the more obvious answer may be adjusting the workload rather than waiting for a reset that isn’t coming.
With the Los Angeles Rams next on the schedule, Las Vegas may be staring at a backfield change sooner rather than later.
In Other News...
Raiders Fans Should Be Careful With The Ashton Jeanty Comparison
Ashton Jeantys early Raiders production has invited an ugly comparison, mostly because the surface numbers look familiar to anyone who remembers Trent Richardsons rapid NFL fade. The caution here is that context matters. Richardson entered the league with a different kind of pre-draft hype and landed behind a stronger blocking environment, while Jeanty has had to navigate a Raiders offense that has not given him much room to work with.
Still, the concerns around Jeanty are real enough to keep the conversation going. His low yards per carry and frequent negative or no-gain runs have been a problem, and the Raiders have not made life easier with poor run blocking, while an ankle issue only adds another layer to the evaluation. The larger point is not that everything is fine, only that it is too early to stamp him with Richardsons fate when the situations around the two backs have not been remotely the same. [Read more 🡒]
Raiders Offensive Line Trouble Has Put Spytek Under Early Pressure
With the Raiders trying to steady an offensive line that has already become a concern, the front office made another round of roster adjustments this week. Las Vegas brought in offensive tackles Amari Kight and Darian Kinnard on the practice squad as part of a push to add more protection depth before facing the Los Angeles Rams.
At the same time, the Raiders cleared room by moving on from tight end Chris Myarick and offensive lineman Evan Neal. It is an early sign that general manager John Spytek is willing to keep working the roster aggressively, and the bigger question is how much improvement he can engineer in time to help a unit that needs it quickly. [Read more 🡒]
Raiders Backfield Suddenly Has A Workload Question Fans Should Watch
The Raiders left Buffalo with a few encouraging signs in the backfield, even if the loss itself still lingered. Rookie Mike Washington Jr. gave the offense a lift with his running, and head coach Klint Kubiak came away pleased enough to point to better production and effort from the group overall.
Kubiaks comments also suggest this is not turning into a one-back operation just yet. Ashton Jeanty and Dylan Laube remain part of the mix, and the workload split in the weeks ahead should be worth watching as Las Vegas tries to find a steadier rhythm on the ground. [Read more 🡒]